Richard Gere Pays Tribute To ‘An Officer And A Gentleman’ Co-Star Louis Gossett Jr.

Louis Gossett Jr., who played Gunnery Sergeant Emil Foley alongside Richard Gere’s Zack Mayo in 1982’s An Officer and a Gentleman, recently died at 87. Although the cause of his death has yet to be disclosed, Louis battled respiratory illness and prostate cancer in his later years.

The late icon, whose character as Sergeant Foley in the classic shaped Gere’s, was the first Black performer to win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Director Taylor Hackford noted that he “definitely deserved” the recognition. “Lou Gossett’s Sergeant Foley may have been the first Black character in American cinema to have absolute authority over white characters,” Taylor stated.

Richard Gere’s heartfelt tribute to Louis Gossett Jr.

Gere had loads of praise for Louis. “I don’t think we ever saw him socially. He was the drill sergeant 24 hours a day, and it showed clearly in his performance. He drove every scene he was in,” 74-year-old Gere added, noting that Louis “was a tough guy with a heart of gold.” Like Taylor, Gere also recalled that he was absolutely “proud of him” when Louis won his Academy Award.

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It has been over four decades since both men appeared together on the box office smash, and from Gere’s experience, it remains a fond memory today. “Every once in a while, I hear people calling me from across the street, ‘Hey Mayo, Mayo-nnaise,’ and that’s Lou,” he told Variety, adding that Louis was perfect for the part because “as tough as Foley was, you always felt this warm heart beating in him. He was someone who really cared about all those kids that he was mentoring.”

Taylor revealed that Sergeant Foley was initially “written as a white man,” until he visited the Navy Officers Flight Training Center in Pensacola, Florida, and realized that “many of the Drill Instructors there were men of color.” “I found it interesting that Black & Brown enlisted men had ‘make-or-break’ control over whether white college graduates would become officers and fighter pilots. At that moment, I changed the casting profile for Sergeant Foley and started meeting actors of color,” he said.

In Gere’s words, his late co-star earned the role and every recognition that came with it because he worked hard to be Foley. “He did a lot of research and spent time with a drill sergeant from Pensacola who was working with us. Lou was on him like white on rice, picking up everything he could,” the Pretty Woman actor said. “…He was a good guy, but he had to be tough on us— and he was super tough. I can’t imagine anyone better than him playing that part.”